A polite message about noisy neighbors | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: At home, two adults plan a friendly message about noise from a neighbor that kept them from sleeping..

EN → ES / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use A polite message about noisy neighbors to practice Spanish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche.

el beh-SEE-noh fweh bahs-TAHN-teh rwee-DOH-soh ah-NOH-cheh The neighbor was quite noisy last night.
B

Escuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

ehs-koo-CHEH MOO-see-kah AHL-tah MYEN-trahs een-tehn-TAH-bah-mohs dohr-MEER I heard loud music while we were trying to sleep.
A

¿Deberíamos dejar un mensaje amable?

deh-beh-REE-ah-mohs deh-HAR oon men-SAH-heh ah-MAH-bleh Should we leave a polite message?
B

Deberíamos escribirlo de forma amable, no con enojo.

deh-beh-REE-ah-mohs ehs-kree-BEER-loh deh FOR-mah ah-MAH-bleh noh kohn eh-NOH-hoh We should make it friendly, not angry.
A

Diré que el ruido no nos dejó dormir.

dee-REH keh el RREE-oo-doh noh nohs deh-HOH dohr-MEER I'll say the noise kept us from sleeping.
B

Añade que sabemos que las noches pueden ser muy ocupadas.

ah-NYAH-deh keh sah-BEH-mohs keh lahs NOH-chehs PWEH-dehn sehr mwee oh-koo-PAH-dahs Add that we know evenings can get busy.
A

Eso hace que el mensaje sea más suave y claro.

EH-soh AH-seh keh el men-SAH-heh seh mahs SWAH-beh ee KLAH-roh That keeps the message softer and clearer.
B

Podemos ponerlo cerca de su puerta más tarde.

poh-DEH-mohs poh-NEHR-loh SEHR-kah deh soo PWEHR-tah mahs TAR-deh We can put it near their door later.

Word by Word

El In “El vecino”, “El” means “the” and introduces the specific neighbor being discussed. A reusable pattern is “El” followed by a singular masculine noun, as in the exact dialogue phrase “El vecino”.
vecino In “El vecino”, “vecino” means “neighbor”, referring to the person living nearby. The exact form is used as the subject in “El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche”.
fue In “El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche”, “fue” means “was” and describes the neighbor last night. It is a form of “ser”; a reusable pattern is “X fue + description” for describing someone or something in a past situation.
bastante In “bastante ruidoso”, “bastante” means “quite” and strengthens the description of how noisy the neighbor was. A reusable pattern is “bastante” followed by an adjective, as in the exact phrase “bastante ruidoso”.
ruidoso In “bastante ruidoso”, “ruidoso” means “noisy” and describes the neighbor. It is used after “fue” in the exact sentence “El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche”.
anoche “Anoche” means “last night” and places the neighbor’s noise in the previous night. It can be used to specify when a past event happened, as in “fue bastante ruidoso anoche”.
Escuché In “Escuché música alta”, “Escuché” means “I heard” and reports the speaker’s experience of hearing music. It is a form of “escuchar”; a reusable pattern is “Escuché + thing heard”, as in the exact phrase “Escuché música alta”.
música In “música alta”, “música” means “music”, the sound that was heard. It is the object of “Escuché” in the exact phrase “Escuché música alta”.
alta In “música alta”, “alta” means “loud” in this dialogue and describes the music. It is placed after “música” in the exact expression “música alta”.
mientras “Mientras” means “while” and connects the loud music with the period when the speakers were trying to sleep. A reusable pattern is “mientras” followed by an ongoing action, as in “mientras intentábamos dormir”.
intentábamos In “mientras intentábamos dormir”, “intentábamos” means “we were trying” and describes an ongoing attempt to sleep. It is a form of “intentar”; a reusable pattern is “intentar + infinitive”, as in the exact phrase “intentábamos dormir”.
dormir In “intentábamos dormir”, “dormir” means “to sleep” and names the action the speakers were trying to do. It is used as an infinitive after “intentábamos” in the exact phrase “intentábamos dormir”.
Deberíamos In “Deberíamos dejar un mensaje”, “Deberíamos” means “we should” and presents leaving a message as a suggestion. It is a form of “deber”; a reusable pattern is “Deberíamos + infinitive” for making a recommendation.
dejar In “dejar un mensaje”, “dejar” means “to leave”, referring to leaving a message for the neighbor. A reusable pattern is “dejar + object”, as in the exact phrase “dejar un mensaje”.
un In “un mensaje”, “un” means “a” and introduces one unspecified message. A reusable pattern is “un” before a singular masculine noun, as in the exact dialogue phrase “un mensaje”.
mensaje In “dejar un mensaje”, “mensaje” means “message”, specifically the polite note the speakers plan to leave. It is the object of “dejar” in the exact phrase “dejar un mensaje”.
amable In “un mensaje amable”, “amable” means “polite” or “friendly” and describes the intended tone of the message. A reusable pattern is a noun followed by “amable” when describing a kind or considerate quality, as in “mensaje amable”.
escribirlo In “Deberíamos escribirlo de forma amable”, “escribirlo” means “to write it”; “lo” refers to “el mensaje”. It combines the infinitive “escribir” with the attached object pronoun “lo”, and the exact phrase expresses writing the message.
de In “de forma amable”, “de” helps form the expression meaning “in a ... manner”. A reusable pattern is “de forma + adjective”, as in the exact phrase “de forma amable”.
forma In “de forma amable”, “forma” means “way” or “manner” and helps describe how the message should be written. Together with “de”, it forms the exact expression “de forma amable”.
no In “no con enojo”, “no” means “not” and rejects an angry way of writing the message. It is placed before the phrase it negates, as in the exact contrast “de forma amable, no con enojo”.
con In “con enojo”, “con” means “with” and connects the manner of writing with anger. A reusable pattern is “con + noun” to describe something done with a feeling or accompanying quality, as in the exact phrase “con enojo”.
enojo In “con enojo”, “enojo” means “anger” and names the tone the speakers do not want to use. The exact phrase “no con enojo” contrasts this unwanted tone with “de forma amable”.
Diré In “Diré que el ruido no nos dejó dormir”, “Diré” means “I will say” and introduces what the speaker plans to write. It is a form of “decir”; a reusable pattern is “Diré que + statement” for stating what one will say.
que In “Diré que el ruido no nos dejó dormir”, “que” means “that” and introduces the content of what the speaker will say. A reusable pattern is “decir que + clause”, represented here by the exact phrase “Diré que el ruido no nos dejó dormir”.
ruido In “el ruido no nos dejó dormir”, “ruido” means “noise”, referring to the sound that prevented the speakers from sleeping. It is the subject of the exact phrase “el ruido no nos dejó dormir”.
nos In “no nos dejó dormir”, “nos” refers to “us”, the speakers affected by the noise. It appears before “dejó” in the exact construction “no nos dejó dormir”.
dejó In “no nos dejó dormir”, “dejó” contributes the meaning “let” or “allowed”, while the full negative construction means that the noise did not let the speakers sleep. It is a form of “dejar”; a reusable pattern is “dejar + person + infinitive”, as in “nos dejó dormir” within the dialogue’s negated phrase.
Añade In “Añade que sabemos...”, “Añade” means “add” and gives a direct instruction to include another idea in the message. It is a form of “añadir”; a reusable pattern is “Añade que + statement” when asking someone to include information.
sabemos In “sabemos que las noches pueden ser muy ocupadas”, “sabemos” means “we know” and introduces shared knowledge about evenings. It is a form of “saber”; a reusable pattern is “sabemos que + clause”, as in the exact dialogue phrase.
las In “las noches”, “las” means “the” and introduces the specific evenings or nights being discussed. It is used before the plural noun “noches” in the exact phrase “las noches”.
noches In “las noches pueden ser muy ocupadas”, “noches” means “evenings” or “nights”, referring to this time of day in general. It is the plural form of “noche” and appears in the exact phrase “las noches”.
pueden In “pueden ser muy ocupadas”, “pueden” means “can” and expresses a possibility about the nights. It is a form of “poder”; a reusable pattern is “pueden + infinitive”, as in the exact phrase “pueden ser”.
ser In “pueden ser muy ocupadas”, “ser” means “to be” and links the nights with the description “muy ocupadas”. It is an infinitive after “pueden”; a reusable pattern is “poder + ser + adjective”.
muy In “muy ocupadas”, “muy” means “very” and strengthens the description of how busy the nights can be. A reusable pattern is “muy” followed by an adjective, as in the exact phrase “muy ocupadas”.
ocupadas In “las noches pueden ser muy ocupadas”, “ocupadas” means “busy” and describes the nights. The form agrees with the plural feminine noun “noches” in the exact phrase “muy ocupadas”.
Eso In “Eso hace que...”, “Eso” means “that” and refers to the idea just mentioned, including the friendly wording of the message. A reusable pattern is “Eso + verb” to refer back to a previous action or idea.
hace In “Eso hace que el mensaje sea más suave y claro”, “hace” means “makes” and expresses that the added wording causes the message to have a gentler, clearer quality. It is a form of “hacer”; a reusable pattern is “hacer que + clause”, as in the exact dialogue phrase.
sea In “hace que el mensaje sea más suave y claro”, “sea” means “be” and describes the resulting quality of the message. It is a form of “ser” used after “hace que”; a reusable pattern is “hacer que algo sea + adjective”.
más In “más suave y claro”, “más” means “more” and indicates an increased degree of gentleness and clarity. A reusable pattern is “más + adjective”, as in the exact phrase “más suave” and the coordinated phrase “más suave y claro”.
suave In “más suave”, “suave” means “gentle” or “soft” and describes the tone of the message. It is used after “más” in the exact phrase “más suave”.
y In “más suave y claro”, “y” means “and” and connects the two qualities attributed to the message. A reusable pattern is “adjective y adjective”, as in the exact phrase “suave y claro”.
claro In “más suave y claro”, “claro” means “clear” and describes the message together with “suave”. It appears in the exact phrase “el mensaje sea más suave y claro”.
Podemos In “Podemos ponerlo cerca de su puerta”, “Podemos” means “we can” and presents putting the message by the door as a possible action. It is a form of “poder”; a reusable pattern is “Podemos + infinitive” for saying what we are able or willing to do.
ponerlo In “Podemos ponerlo cerca de su puerta”, “ponerlo” means “to put it”, with “lo” referring to the message. It combines the infinitive “poner” with the attached object pronoun “lo”, followed here by the location phrase “cerca de su puerta”.
cerca In “cerca de su puerta”, “cerca” means “near” and indicates the location where the message can be put. A reusable pattern is “cerca de + noun”, as in the exact phrase “cerca de su puerta”.
su In “su puerta”, “su” means “their” in this context and identifies the door associated with the neighbor. A reusable pattern is “su” before a noun to show possession or association, as in the exact phrase “su puerta”.
puerta In “cerca de su puerta”, “puerta” means “door”, specifically the neighbor’s door where the message may be placed. It is the noun after “su” in the exact location phrase “cerca de su puerta”.
tarde In “más tarde”, “tarde” contributes to the meaning “later” and places the action after the current moment. The reusable time expression is the exact phrase “más tarde”, used to say when something will happen.

Grammar Points

mientras + imperfecto

Mientras intentábamos dormir

MYEN-trahs een-tehn-TAH-bah-mohs dohr-MEER

while we were trying to sleep

Mientras introduces an action in progress; intentábamos is the imperfect form of intentar.

infinitivo + lo

Ponerlo cerca de la puerta

poh-NEHR-loh SEHR-kah deh lah PWEHR-tah

to put it near the door

The object pronoun lo can attach directly to an infinitive, meaning “it” or “him.”

Spanish Vocabulary

alto adj
AHL-toh loud; high alta

Escuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

anoche adv
ah-NOH-cheh last night

El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche.

bastante adv
bahs-TAHN-teh quite; fairly

El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche.

dejar verb
deh-HAR to leave; to let

¿Deberíamos dejar un mensaje amable?

dormir verb
dohr-MEER to sleep

Escuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

escuchar verb
ehs-koo-CHAR to hear; to listen to Escuché

Escuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

intentar verb
een-tehn-TAR to try intentábamos

Escuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

mensaje noun
men-SAH-heh message

¿Deberíamos dejar un mensaje amable?

mientras conj
MYEN-trahs while

Escuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

música noun
MOO-see-kah music

Escuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

ruidoso adj
rwee-DOH-soh noisy

El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche.

vecino noun
beh-SEE-noh neighbor

El vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche.

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

The neighbor was quite noisy last night.

Show AnswerEl vecino fue bastante ruidoso anoche.

I heard loud music while we were trying to sleep.

Show AnswerEscuché música alta mientras intentábamos dormir.

Should we leave a polite message?

Show Answer¿Deberíamos dejar un mensaje amable?

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

neighbor

Show Answervecino

to hear; to listen to

Show AnswerEscuché

while

Show Answermientras

to try

Show Answerintentábamos